The Witherspoon Student Center, home of the NC State African-American Cultural Center, was completed in 1990. It is named after Augustus McIver Witherspoon. In 1971, he became the first African-American to... The Witherspoon Student Center, home of the NC State African-American Cultural Center, was completed in 1990. It is named after Augustus McIver Witherspoon. In 1971, he became the first African-American to earn a PhD (in Botany) from NC State and later join the university faculty. (The first African-American to earn a PhD at NC State was Stephen Benton Latimer in 1967.) Witherspoon served as Assistant Dean for Minority Affairs, Associate Dean of the Graduate School, and Associate Provost.